Eko: "Impressive in all departments!!!"

Over the course of past 11 months, I have watched numerous movies but at times, due to various commitments, I have missed out to write my opinion about many of them. However, there are certain movies that is so impactful that I make sure to find the time to pen about it, to encourage as many to check them out. One such movie is Dinjith Ayyathan's "Eko" that had hit the screens last week. So why did I like it so much???

Bahul Ramesh places the story in Kattukunnu, a sparsely inhabited mountain range in the Kerala-Karnataka border, where Mlaathi (Biana Momin) lived with the support of the young caretaker, Peeyoos (Sandeep Pradeep) & numerous canines for company. She was a Malaysian by birth and one of the wives of Kuriyachan (Saurabh Sachdeva), an expert dog trainer and a character so sinister & intriguing that saw him create many enemies over the years. He had presently gone into hiding to escape from them & the latest person who came in search was his partner of yester years, Mohan Pothan (Vineeth). So was Kuriyachan actually in that region???

As part of media promotions, Bahul did mention that he was inspired by Edgar Wright's 'Cornetto trilogy' & hence this was the third and final instalment of his own 'Animal trilogy' which included "Kishkindha Kaandam" & "Kerala Crime Files 2". He has created a fantastic script which is a slow burner and keeps us engaged until the very last shot. Dinjith has done utmost justice to the written word with his visual depiction of the intriguing world building. The duo doesn't resort to spoon feeding the audience & that was a smart move as it maintains the mysterious aura right throughout and wows us when we understand the revelation. There are other subtle iterations that they convey with the behaviour of various characters but revealing that here will take away the thrill for many of you. 

Along with the script, the technical aspects were executed impressively with Bahul handling the cinematography. The calmness, beauty and dangers of nature are captured exquisitely & that adds more impact to the scenes. Until I heard the background score of this flick, I personally felt that there was no one to even challenge Jakes Bejoy this year but Mujeeb Majeed proved me wrong, as it was just top notch stuff. Similarly, Sooraj also deserves praise for a fine job done with the editing, while the art department also did justice to their work.

Another major positive is the casting choice as it presents us with a set of characters who are known to us but still makes it difficult to make any preconceived notion as to how their characters would behave. Sandeep has always done reasonably well in the few opportunities that he had got and over here, he truly impresses especially towards the latter half, showcasing his ability. Biana Momin was fine with KPAC Leela providing apt dubbing. Vineeth is an artist who has continued to impress over the past few years & with his performance here, it is a reminder that he is an artist that needs to be explored more. Saurabh's choice was good but I dont think he was able to effectively convey the vile and sinister nature of Kuriyachan. Each & every artist have also done their part aptly be it Ashokan, Narain, Saheer Mohammad, Binu Pappan, Ranjith Shekhar etc.

Verdict: This is undoubtedly the best Malayalam movie that I had watched this year. Could it have been better? Well it could have if Saurabh's performance was more effective. However, that doesn't diminish the effect of the story as such. In short, dont miss it!!!

Rating: 4.25/5

Regards...Ben

Kaantha: "Excellent performances though the screenplay lacked heft in the latter half!!!"

Less than 6 weeks left in the year & there are quite a few interesting movies lined up for release. One of them hit the screens this weekend which happened to be Selvamani Selvaraj's "Kaantha" bank rolled by Rana Daggubati & DQ under their Spirit Media & Wayfarer Films banners respectively. The trailer had created a flutter among the audience & I was eager to check it out as it looked like a winner. However, looks can be deceiving.

Set in the 1950s, Selvamani along with Tamizh Prabha who had penned the script, gives us a glimpse of the Tamil film industry of those times. After delivering numerous blockbusters over the years, Modern Studios which was presently managed by Martin (Ravindra Vijay) was in dire straits & as a last resort he decided to revive the shelved project, 'Shantha'. It was the dream project of the renowned director, Ayya (Samuthirakani) which had to be dropped earlier due to the ego issues between Ayya & his protege, TK Mahadevan (DQ), the numero uno box office star. Eventually due to Martin's request & pressure, Ayya reluctantly agreed to work with Mahadevan on the condition that the heroine will be his protege, Kumari (Bhagyashri Borse). But it was easier said than done especially since Ayya & Mahadevan couldn't stand each other's presence.

Initially there were speculations that DQ's character was inspired from the life of MKT Bhagavathar, who is considered as the first superstar of the Tamil film industry due to the focus on the character's looks, singing ability and the murder allegation. Later on, there were speculations about M.R Radha also being an inspiration as he was known as 'Nadigavel' (DQ's character is referred to as 'Nadigar Chakaravathy') who was charged for the assassination attempt on MGR. Anyway though the makers have denied  it, it would be fair to say that elements from both these real life individuals have provided inspiration. 

The movie begins with the focus on the feud between Ayya & Mahadevan, before it becomes an investigative drama in the latter half. The transition is smooth and the audience is kept hooked to the proceedings that unfold. Though there are some impressive sequences in the second half as well, I felt that there was lack of adequate content to provide the effective connect between those sequences. The melodramatic scenes lacked the expected punch despite the excellent performances and technical prowess. 

The USP is undoubtedly the performances with DQ producing his career best performance as he effortlessly portrayed the aura, arrogance and pain that his character went through. Samuthirakani put on an equally commendable act along with Bhagyashri who ensured that she is more than just a pretty face. Rana did a fine job as well & was certainly enjoyable from the audience perspective, but somewhere I felt it was not in sync with the way the rest of the characters of that period behaved. The rest of the artists have also done justice to their part. 

On the technical side, Dani Sanchez Lopez deserves special praise as the cinematography had a major role to play here. The choice of lighting, the retro feel and shadows were equally important in imparting the desired effect and he aced it (pretty much like what he did in "Mahanati") aided by Llewellyn Antony's editing skills. Jakes Bejoy's purple patch continued as his score was in sync with what the movie demanded while the songs by Jhanu Chanthar was fine. 

Verdict: Certainly expecting it to feature prominently in many of the award functions next year. Similarly, expecting it to be a winner at the box office. In short, do check it out!!!

Rating: 3.5/5

Regards...Ben

Dies Irae: "Rahul yet again stamps his authority in the horror genre!!!"

Unlike the previous years, the announcement of the Kerala State Awards has been much delayed & presently it is expected by Monday. Among the various nominees, the one that I am most excited about is Rahul Sadasivan's "Bramayugam" as it was impressive in most of the categories. So much so, I would be surprised (with all due respect to Vijayaraghavan & Asif Ali) if Mammookka isn't awarded the best actor for his fantastic performance as 'Kodumon Potti'. Hence when Rahul had announced that his latest flick was hitting the screens on Halloween, it was more than ample reason to be excited about it. So will he able to match the high standards that he set with his recent two directorial ventures???

As with his earlier movies, Rahul had penned the script which commences with the audience being introduced to Madhusudhanan Potti (Gibin Gopinath), a building contractor who was perturbed by some signs. Soon after, he gets to know that his neighbour, Kani (Sushmitha Bhat) had committed suicide. The focus moves to Rohan (Pranav Mohanlal), a rich spoilt brat who reveled in drugs and flings had thrown a party for his buddies and that's when he learned about Kani's death with whom he had a brief affair after which he had ghosted her. Little did he realize that this incident was going to have an impact in his life. 

The main reason I like about Rahul's movies is his ability to create fright out of the ordinary rather than resort to the typical gimmicks. Obviously, those elements does feature as well with the predominant focus being on the sound design that is weaved organically into the screenplay making it an immersive experience for the audience. On the terms of the story as such, I would not rate it as unique or something that keep us hooked to it. This is where his directorial skills came to the fore as his brilliant technical team did utmost justice to his vision. 

Incidentally, it is the same technical team from "Bramayugam" that had assembled here and they have showcased their class here also. This includes Christo Xavier's excellent BGM and the sound design handled by Jayadevan Chakkadath & MR Rajakrishnan which was exceptional to say the least. Shenad Jalal's visuals and Shafique's editing perfectly conveyed the mood to the audience while the excellent work done by the art & makeup team deserves special praise. 

Coming to performances, there are just a handful of characters and each one of them have done complete justice to their part. These include Pranav who finally landed a role that completely suited him in the sense that it did not require him to portray a lot of emotions. At the same time, his performance during the tense moments was impressive. Equally impressive or maybe a notch higher will be Gibin Gopinath with Jaya Kurup putting in a commanding act as well.

Verdict: This is yet another benchmark in this genre as Rahul continues to push the envelope in terms of craftsmanship & story telling. Do check it out!!!

Rating: 3.5/5

Regards...Ben